There are some issues that cut across language, culture and geography. Our occasional series, Here, There, examines how other countries approach these universal questions. We’ve looked at everything from gay soldiers in the United Kingdom's military to public transit in Bogotá. Perhaps there's something about Australia's experience with the invasive cane toad that we can apply to Lake Michigan's Asian carp problem. At the very least -- amidst the differences that make us American or Korean or Russian -- these stories are intended to remind us that the human experience is a shared one.

Thomas Minder believes Swiss CEO salaries have spiraled out of control. He spearheaded an initiative in his native Switzerland to give shareholders greater control over executive compensation. He is not a labor activist or union leader, he is the CEO of a small Swiss cosmetics firm called Trybol.

In Europe, like the U.S., the debate over executive compensation is raging. Many top managers have gotten the axe and there's been considerable pressure to limit pay packages for companies that have received bailout money.

On Thursday, we talked about Sweden and why it's one of the cleanest governments in the world. If all the talk of Swedish social equality and fairness made you a little ashamed about the “Chicago Way,” then take heart: Next, we take you to the land of Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi.

To judge by public perceptions, the United States is far from the most corrupt country in the world. Of 180 nations rated by Transparency International's Corruption Perceptions Index for 2008, the U.S. ranks as the 18th least corrupt.

A tape laden with f-bombs and a U.S. senate seat for sale. Cash packed into a freezer. In the last few years, Americans have watched politician after politician go down in flames. Look no further than our last two governors and political insiders like Tony Rezko and Stuart Levine.